Q&A + Excerpt from Shannon Stacey
This interview with Shannon Stacey may contain affiliate/referral links. It is a way for this site to earn advertising fees by advertising or linking to certain products and/or services.
I am so excited to share this excerpt and Q&A with author, Shannon Stacey! She just released, More than Neighbors, a fun and sexy enemies to lovers with a single mom! This is the first book in the Blackberry Bay series and it sounds soo good!
What was the romance novel that got you hooked on the genre (or: What was the romance novel that inspired you to become a romance author?)
I don’t really remember a time I didn’t love romance novels, but Plain-Jane Princess by Karen Templeton (a Silhouette Intimate Moments from 2001) is the romance novel that renewed my determination to become a published romance author. Not only does it remain one of my all-time favorite reads, but getting to know the author online taught me that it was possible to juggle kids and a home and writing and inspired me to keep trying.
Please share in your own words what it means to experience That Harlequin Feeling
No matter what I’m in the mood for—from a small town single mom to a billionaire business mogul—I know I can reach for a Harlequin romance and read an emotional, positive story that will give me the happily ever after ending I love so much.
What was the name of your first published novel, and tell us a bit about that experience?
There was a lot of variety in my publishing journey before I settled on contemporary romance, but selling Exclusively Yours to Carina Press and seeing the Harlequin name across the top of my contract was a dream come true. More Than Neighbors is my 29th title under the Harlequin umbrella and ten years later, it’s no less of a thrill. And being published by Harlequin Special Edition was another longtime dream come true, so I took myself out to lunch to celebrate (I had the most amazing grilled cheese and bacon sandwich I’ve ever had).
‘More than Neighbors’ by Shannon Stacey
Cam Maguire wasn’t sure what to make of finding a beautiful woman, a little girl and a tiny bit of fluff that he was pretty sure was a dog in the yard when he went outside to look for his grandmother’s cat.
He’d heard all the jokes about cats being real jerks and secretly plotting the demise of the humans who cared for them. He used to laugh at those jokes.
He didn’t laugh anymore.
“I don’t understand,” the woman—Meredith, she’d said her name was—said and he realized she was still confused about why he was living next door to her.
“The woman who lived here, Carolina Archambault, was my grandmother and she passed away recently. I guess it must have been after you talked to your real estate agent about the neighbors.”
“I’m so sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you,” he said, because it was the right thing to say. And he did feel a sense of loss.
It was his loss that he’d never met the woman who was his biological paternal grandmother and who had lived in this eccentric and colorful cottage by the lake.
“There you are,” he said to the extremely large and very long-haired black cat who sauntered into the yard as if she hadn’t disappeared for four hours to who knew where. And she had burrs in her tail again. Getting those things out of her fur made him wish he’d been a hockey goalie in college so he’d have the proper safety equipment for the job. “I’ve been looking for you.”
Elinor—which was a ridiculous name for a cat, if you asked him—ignored him as expected and walked onto the neighbor’s grass as if she owned it.
The little girl had left the dock and was exploring the yard with her dog, its leash clutched in her little hand. The dog watched the cat warily, but appeared to be smart enough not to mess with her. And Sophie was a cute kid, with long brownish-blond hair like her mother’s. They looked a lot alike, actually, right down to their serious expressions.
“I’d offer to give you tips on living in Blackberry Bay,” he said, “but I haven’t been here very long.”
“I’m from here, actually. I’ve been in California for years, so it might have changed a little, but I’m guessing not very much.”
“What brings you back?” He instantly regretted asking the question when sadness flitted across her pretty face and settled in the tautness of her mouth.
“My husband passed away a couple of years ago and I decided Sophie and I would be happier here, near my parents. And I have some pretty fond memories of the town, too.”
As her words sank in, he looked back to the little girl, trying to imagine how devastating it must have been for her to lose her daddy at such a young age. And how much harder the grieving process must have been for Meredith because she had to get Sophie through it. He’d never suffered that kind of loss, but imagining their sorrow hit him in the gut.
“I’m sorry about your husband,” he said sincerely as he looked back to Meredith.
“Thank you.” She gave him a tight smile. “So you’re staying for the summer, you said? Where do you usually live?”
About Shannon Stacey
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Shannon Stacey lives with her husband and two sons in New England, where her two favorite activities are writing stories of happily ever after and riding her four-wheeler. From May to November, the Stacey family spends their weekends on their ATVs, making loads of muddy laundry to keep Shannon busy when she's not at her computer. She prefers writing to laundry, however, and considers herself lucky she got to be an author when she grew up
